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'Supergirl': Who Should Play Superman? 10 Dream Casting Ideas

When the CBS-turned-CW superhero series returns for season two, Superman will finally be introduced. But who should don the red cape this time?

After a year of teasing, Supergirl is finally going to introduce Superman in season two.

When the CBS-turned-CW series returns in the fall, Kara's (Melissa Benoist) adult cousin Clark Kent/Superman will first be seen visiting the fledgling superhero in National City. Clark will stick around for the first two episodes of season two ... and yes, this time viewers will get to see his face, unlike in the season one finale when all that was shown were his boots.

"Greg [Berlanti], Ali [Adler] and I are beyond thrilled to welcome Clark Kent and his slightly-more-famous alter ego to the world of Supergirl," executive producer Andrew Kreisberg said. "We cannot wait to see who next dons the red cape!"

The role is currently being cast, but The Hollywood Reporter has some ideas on who should take on the iconic DC Comics character next. A few names are decidedly out of the running already, however. Dean Cain, who played Superman in the Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman TV series, already guest stars on the show as Kara's adoptive father Jeremiah Danvers. Another Superman alum, Superman Returns star Brandon Routh, already stars as Ray Palmer aka The Atom on Legends of Tomorrow, which shares the same universe as Supergirl along with The Flash and Arrow. Henry Cavill is out because he currently plays Superman in the DC Comics movies, and Warner Bros. has already made it clear that the TV and film franchises are not connected by casting Ezra Miller as the big screen Flash while Grant Gustin plays the Scarlet Speedster on The CW's The Flash series.

If these former and current Supermen can't play Clark Kent on Supergirl, here are 10 other possible actors who can take on the iconic role for season two.

Tom Welling

The Smallville fans have spoken. Despite the fact that Welling already played Clark Kent for 10 years on another WB-turned-CW series, viewers want to see him put that red cape back on just five years after Smallville ended. THR readers overwhelmingly replied to the initial casting announcement with Welling's name, and despite Welling's reluctance to wear the Superman suit on Smallville (the series finale costume Clark wore was all CGI), he told BuzzFeed earlier this year he wasn't opposed to reprising his super role. "There’s people who would like it ... there’s people who don’t like it, but I will tell you that no one has ever actually asked me to do it. So, I don’t know," Welling said, adding that it would be "odd" as he wouldn't know who Superman would be at that point.

But there are a few logistics issues that would need to be ironed out for Welling to be cast. First, Smallville's backstory for Superman was completely different from Supergirl's. Plus, the writers would need to figure out a logical explanation for why Supergirl villain Indigo (Laura Vandervoort) looks shockingly identical to Smallville's version of Kara/Supergirl (also played by Vandervoort). And Welling would finally need to get over his "no tights, no flights" policy that he stuck with for 10 years on Smallville.

Matt Bomer

Another name being floated around as a possible new Superman is Matt Bomer. The White Collar alum has already proven he can handle physical stunts after his time playing a CIA agent on Chuck, and he even voiced Superman in the 2013 animated movie Superman: Unbound. It certainly doesn't hurt that he looks the part, too.

Ryan McPartlin

Another Chuck alum, McPartlin is the total all-American package. He's got the strong jaw, the athletic build and the deep, commanding voice all necessary to play Superman. Sure, he may be blonde now, but that's nothing a little hair dye can't fix.

Brett Dalton

Now that the former Marvel villain has been killed off Agents of SHIELD, he's got a lot of free time on his hands. What better way to spend his newfound freedom than by joining another comic book series, but this time, as the greatest hero ever known? Unless there's some secret non-compete clause in all Marvel/DC Comics stars contracts ...

James Marsden

Marsden has some experience in the Superman world, since he played Richard White in Superman Returns. But this time around, he should play the titular superhero, not the other guy vying for Lois Lane's heart. He's got the hair, he's got the smile, and he's got the charm to pull it off.

Zachary Levi

This Chuck alum proved himself as a believable superhero as Fandral, one of Thor's (Chris Hemsworth) most trusted soldiers in Thor: The Dark World. He could totally make the jump from Marvel film star to DC Comics TV star as Superman since he's got the physical resemblance and the acting chops down.

John Cho

Who says Superman has to be white? Supergirl's writers have already proven that they're not afraid to flip the script on classic characters by casting Mehcad Brooks as James Olsen. Cho has already started campaigning to end Hollywood whitewashing with his #StarringJohnCho movement, and Supergirl would be the perfect answer to that.

Michael B. Jordan

Going off of that, who wouldn't want to see Jordan in a successful superhero role after Fantastic Four flopped? He's clearly got what it takes to pull off the role physically after his work in the critical hit Creed.

Sam Witwer

Another Smallville alum perfect for the role is Witwer, who played Doomsday in the older series. He killed it as a man struggling with his discovery that he was destined to become the weapon that would take down Superman, so just think of what he can accomplish as Superman himself.

Scott Eastwood

Look at a photo of Clint Eastwood's son and just try to argue that with some hair dye and glasses, he wouldn't be the perfect Clark Kent. Sure, he's going to be in the DC Comics film Suicide Squad, but the DC movies and TV shows are so separate that it wouldn't be an issue.

Who do you want to see play Superman on Supergirl? Let us know in the comments section below.

Supergirl returns for season two on Mondays this fall at 8 p.m. on The CW.